11/15/23
9:00 am

The Practical Mac Buying Guide (November 2023)

Looking to buy a new Mac soon? Figure out which Mac is the best one for your needs and budget. This practical guide will help you decide between a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini or Mac Studio.

You can also watch this video at YouTube (but with ads).

Video Transcript: Hi, this is Gary with MacMost.com. Looking to but a new Mac? Which one is the right one for you.
MacMost is brought to you thanks to a great group of more than 1000 supporters. Go to MacMost.com/patreon. There you can read more about it. Join us and get exclusive content and course discounts. 
So Apple just came out with a new MacBook Pros and a new iMac. So now they have a complete lineup to end 2023. If you're looking to buy a new Mac you're probably  wondering which model you should get. Apple's lineup right now is more compact than it has been in a long time. There are really just nine models you can buy. Two of them we can eliminate pretty quickly. 
You can see here there are five MacBook models. Three MacBook Airs, including an old M1 MacBook Air that Apple is still selling. Then there is only one all in one Mac, the iMac 24". Then there are three different Desktop Macs. These are Macs that come without a screen. We can eliminate two of these. I wouldn't recommend buying the old M1 MacBook Air now. It is priced really low for educational institutions and things like that but it is really not that much more expensive for an M2 MacBook Air if that is what you're looking for and you're going to get at least one, maybe two more years of use out of it in the long run making it worth spending an extra $100 there. At the other end the MacPro, which is really for high end professionals for people who work in production studios and the like. For most users getting an extremely powerful Mac means the Mac Studio not the MacPro. So let's get rid of those two. That brings us down to seven models. Four MacBooks and three Desktops. 
So, of course, the big decision you need to make at the beginning is do you want a MacBook or do you want a Desktop Mac. A MacBook, of course, is portable. You can take it with you anywhere. So it is ideal for students or people that need to take their Mac with them from home to work or some other location. It's also, of course, great for bringing with when traveling and even if you use your Mac mostly in your home, but you use it in different rooms of your home. So usually it is pretty clear if you want a MacBook model rather than a Desktop. You can still take a MacBook and plug it into an external display and use it as a Desktop machine. It's got that advantage. But it also has the battery in it and the portability. 
So let's take a look at if you decide you want a MacBook, which one you should get. There's a division between MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. So the MacBook Air models now using the M2 processor have just that one processor option. These are lower priced models. The screens aren't as advanced. They are a little bit lighter weight and the two screens are smaller. 13" and 15" models as opposed to the 14 and 16" of the MacBook Pros. Don't be afraid of the fact that they've got M2 processors in them. We will probably see MacBook Airs with M3 processors in the next year but there is really not that big a difference when you go from M1 to M2, or M2 to M3. So it is perfectly fine in  2023 and early 2024 to buy a M2 MacBook Air. In fact this is the very machine that I've got as my portable Mac. They are limited in the number of ports they've got and the number of external displays you can attach. Just one to them. So if you need more external displays or you need to hookup a lot of peripherals you probably want to look at the MacBook Pro. But the price is great. These are fantastic for students or anybody with just general casual use for their Mac. But with my MacBook Air I still occasionally use it to do  some pretty heavy lifting. Like using Xcode to program or using ScreenFlow or Final Cut Pro to produce these videos. I mostly do that with my Desktop Mac but if I need to I can do it with my MacBook Air and it works pretty well. 
So the think to remember with low end Macs like the MacBook Air or the Mac Mini that we will look at in a minute is you still can do pretty intense work on them. You mostly likely only run into trouble if you want to use lots of different apps at the same time. Like maybe After Effects and PhotoShop and Excel and Final Cut Pro all at the same time. But you can use anyone of those individually at the times that you need to on even the MacBook Air or the Mac Mini. 
Now the MacBook Pros are great because you can go to the higher end processors. So, of course,  they are M3 now, they're new. But more important than that, you can use the Pro or the Max version of the M3 processors. Those are much faster when going up different levels, like from the base to the Pro, or the Pro to the Max. That's a much bigger jump than say going from an M2 to an M3. MacBook Pros also have multiple extra screens depending upon your configuration. If you really want lots of extra screens you want to get one with an M3 Max Processor in it. The screens are much better. So if you are doing pro graphics work the screens are probably going to be better for you than the ones in the MacBook Air. Also, of course, the higher end MacBook Pro models have Thunderbolt 4 ports so if you need to connect a lot of fast peripherals then the MacBook Pro is right for you. In addition to that it should be noted that if you really want a lot of screen real estate but still want it to be a portable Mac then the ultimate one to get is the 16" MacBook Pro. That's the main advantage of that model. Having that big, brilliant, screen if you need to work with a lot of things like in Final Cut Pro or Xcode. 
Now let's take a look at the Desktop models starting with the all-in-one iMac. So the iMac is a lower end Mac. Only comes with a M3 processor. You can't go up to say the M3 Pro. But it comes with its own screen, of course, and you get a keyboard and mouse with it as well. So you're not spending that much money and you're getting everything that you need. The iMac looks great and of course it uses almost no cables at all. You can just get away with just the power cable, really. It looks great and it comes in all those different colors and all that. It's great for casual use. It is basically the equivalent to the MacBook Air but on a desktop with a much bigger screen. The 24" screen being way bigger than even the 16" screen on the MacBook Pro. 
So here are the three Desktop models. If you decide the iMac is for you then you've just got that one choice. If you want to go with a headless Mac, something that doesn't have a screen, then you've got the Mac Mini and the Mac Studio. You can look at this as basically one choice. The lower end is the Mac Mini and then you have the larger version of that which is the Mac Studio. So it depends on what you want. If you want to use the M2 or M2 Pro processor then you can do the Mini. If you want to go above that, to the M2 Macs or the M2 Ultra Processor, then you go with the Studio. Other than that it is a very similar design. The Studio is just a little taller. Of course the Studio is also capable of a lot more. You get four Thunderbolt 4 ports with it. The number of displays really depends on a few things. Like first of all the Mac Mini and Mac Studio only have external displays. Whereas say the iMac has its own internal display and you can have one additional display. The same thing with MacBooks. They are about additional displays because obviously there is one that's built in. Also, of course, the number of displays depends on the display. A 4K, 5K, 6K, or 8K display, the lower numbers might only be able to do two external displays for a Mac Studio. That would apply, of course, if you were attaching two 8K displays. If you're talking about 4K displays you can attach up to six of those. 
Now the low end MacMini you can get really cheap. All the way down to $600. So it is a great bargain option if you already have a screen, keyboard, and a trackpad or a mouse. Even boosting it up a little bit a little bit extra memory and a larger drive still makes it a good bargain compared to an iMac if you already have a screen. 
Now there are lot of reason to go for a Mini or a Studio over an iMac. One of them is to separate the display from the Mac itself. This could be really useful if you plan on upgrading your Mac more often than, say, every three or four or five years. You can keep the same display. Say if you get Apple's really great Studio display you can keep using that with your next Mac as well. Whereas, of course, with an iMac you're replacing the entire thing. Now while the Mac Mini is still a good machine for casual home use, if you're going for a pro use for using this for work or making money then the Mac Studio is a higher price makes a little more sense. So no matter what you're choosing between, whether you're choosing between a MacBook Air and a MacBook Pro or a MacMini or iMac and a Mac Studio you always have to think about the fact that your needs and your budget are different than everybody else's.
Now if somebody else advises you to get a MacBook Pro over a MacBook Air ask them why. Specifically not for them but for you. Why does it fit your budget and your needs better. The same for getting the Mac Studio over say a MacMini. Why does that make sense for you. Not for somebody else. But for you, for your needs and your budget. Everybody is a little different. That's why Apple has all of these different options. 
Now you may have two or three decisions to make even after you decide on the right model for you. For instance, here for the Mac Mini you can decide between the M2 or the M2Pro Processor. So you're spending more money to get a processor that is much more capable. For instance you could see 8 and 10 for the cores versus 10 and 16. So this is going to be a much faster machine. If you really feel you need that to do pro work then you're going to want to make that decision. The same thing when looking at a Mac Studio and deciding between the Macs or the Ultra versions of the M2 processor. 
After you decide that you've got two other decisions to make on all models. One is how much memory should you get. Here are the memory options for the MacBook Air. You can see 8GB or go up to 16GB, double the memory for $200. Then go up for another $200 to 24GB. Now a lot of people will advise you to start with 16GB. But it really depends on your needs. For casual home use 8GB is fine. Macs are excellent with memory management. You swap space on the very fast built-in SSD to handle more apps, more things going on. I've thrown a lot at my 8GB MacBook Air and it can handle a lot. Not as much as my Mac Studio, that's got 64GB of RAM. But for most casual users the 8GB may be fine. There are a lot of people today spending money on 16GB when 8GB will do and a lot of people advising casual and home users of Macs to get more memory than they really need. 
The other decision you need to make is how much storage. So some Macs start with as little as 256GB of storage on the SSD. I would say that's not good for anybody. At 256 a lot of that is going to be taken up with the system and apps and is going to leave very little room for you to store any of your files. If you think you don't have any files, well, you probably have some photos, you probably listen to some music, you might either make or download some videos. It adds up quickly. Even if you don't think you're using much it is easy to overlook somethings that you do or forget that a year or two from now you may start using your Mac in a different way. I would, at the very least, get 512GB of storage in any Mac that you buy. Even go up a higher level to future proof your Mac for things you may do in the future and the files you may accumulate before I would look at memory. If you're thinking, well, I can just get external storage if I need more keep in mind that using iCloud always uses the internal drive. So if you have a lot of files and you're going to store them in iCloud, which most people should be doing, then you're going to want more space on your internal drive. That external storage isn't going to help. It also is going to be a pain to carry external with you everywhere you go if you're using a MacBook. Plus the internal SSDs on Macs are much faster than the external SSDs that you could buy online for cheap. 
The reason I recommend prioritizing storage over memory is from years and years and years of answering people's questions and hearing people's problems that often come down to the fact that they didn't get a large enough drive in their Mac when they first bought it. I hear this all the time and it is constantly causing people problems. Whereas if somebody got too little memory that can usually be solved by simply not running too many apps at the same time when you need to do intense work. But again it comes down to your needs and your budget. If you have the budget to get both memory and storage, then get both. But if you have to settle for upgrading just one make sure you upgrade your storage first. 
So in summary if you're a casual or home user then you can look at the MacBook Air or the iMac or the Mac Mini for low cost Macs. If you're a pro user you need to use intense apps like maybe PhotoShop or After Effects or large Excel databases, maybe Xcode then you want to look at the pro models. The MacBook Pros or the Mac Studio. However, even if you are a pro user you can probably get by with any of the lower end Macs as long as you don't try to do too many things at once. If you're a home user that has a larger budget and wants to have something more powerful you can certainly go for a MacBook Pro or Mac Studio as well. 
I hope you found this practical Mac Buyer's Guide useful. Thanks for watching.

Comments: 21 Responses to “The Practical Mac Buying Guide (November 2023)”

sury

1 year ago

Thanks a lot Gary. Very useful.

Wade Nofziger

1 year ago

I am thinking about getting a new iMac, but not sure which version to get. We are retired and I use this for my main "desktop" efforts. I need several USB ports for various things, but otherwise, the use is just general stuff. I am thinking about the mid-range one. What do you recommend?
Thanks.
Wade

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Wade: It all depends on your needs and budget. What do you use it for? As for USB ports, you can always get a hub with any Mac you choose.

Cliff Gittens

1 year ago

I want to upgarde my 2017 27" Imac with a Mac Mini M2 basic model. I only use 166 MG of disc space on my Imac so it should all fit into the 256 MB on the Mac Mini. However, I am concerned about how to migrate the data over to the Mini Mac using Migration Assistant. My concern is that I use a bootable external SSD (Thunderbolt enclosure) as the main drive on my Imac. Would anyone know if it is possible to use Migrations Assistant to go from a bootable external SSD to the new Mac Mini M2.

Dan Majerczyk

1 year ago

For me, this article was perfect. I've been having issues with my IMAC 27", which has an Intel chip. Your article spelled out everything I needed to help make my decision. I've decided to go with the Mac Studio. My only question is should I wait until it's available with the M3 chip?

Thank you in advance, I read your articles regularly, because they are helpful and written in a way I can understand.

Dan.

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Cliff: If you are using 166GB on your Mac now, I wouldn't stick with 256GB as your needs are likely to increase. Future-proof it a but with at least getting 512GB. I don't recommend 256GB for anything except very specialized uses. You should be able to use Migration Assistant, but the worst case is you just connect the drive and bring things over manually.

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Dan: You can wait for the M3 Max Mac Studio, but then there will be an M4 after that. There is always going to be something new coming soon.

Bill Grimm

1 year ago

I have a 2017 Imac 27". If I were to upgrade to a Mac mini or Mac book, would I be able to use my current 27" screen with either? Thanks Gary.

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Bill: Not efficiently. See https://macmost.com/why-you-probably-cant-use-your-old-imac-as-a-display.html

Melvyn Halbert

1 year ago

You made a point that the higher-end MacBook Pros have Thunderbolt 4 ports. The current models of 13" and 15" MacBook Airs also have Thunderbolt 4, at much lower cost. Moreover, some colors of the 2023 MacBook Airs are now widely discounted ($200 off list price for the 13" and $250 off for the 15"), which makes them even more attractive.

Bruce Slomka

1 year ago

Thanks for your excellent review and suggestions. One reason for the casual and non-pro user to consider upgrading to the 14" or 16" model is the gorgeous screen. The XDR display makes using the computer so much more enjoyable even if all you are doing is surfing the web or opening email.
Bruce

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Melvyn: That's not correct. The M2 MacBook Air has Thunderbolt 3 ports. See https://www.apple.com/macbook-air-13-and-15-m2/specs/

Paul Guenther

1 year ago

Hi Gary,
I bought a new iMac a year ago with 512GB SSD option. It is now a year later and I am unable to install the latest update. I have cleared all photos and music from my HD and moved as many apps as I could to the cloud. I was able to squeeze in the update but now I have continual problems maintaining connections to OneDrive, and now I can't run any apps due to lack of memory. I think Apple should drop the 512gb option.

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Paul: Yes, it definitely seems like 512 is too little for your needs. Meanwhile I have others arguing with me that 256GB is enough for people 😖

Nancy Y

1 year ago

Hi Gary, Is it possible to use the (new) iMac screen with the new MBP M3? As the only and/or second monitor?
Thanks for this! I didn't even know they came out with M3 on MBP... procrastination pays!

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Nancy: Not really. There are ways, but it isn't straightforward and it won't get good results. AirPlay to the iMac would be the simplest option, but the speed won't be what you expect with a second screen directly connected. If you really need a second screen to get work done, get an actual external display.

David Wright

1 year ago

Hi Gary,
As always great information clearly laid out. I have an iMac 27" 2020 model so still some use yet but I had been wondering where to go when I do decide to change, I would not like to go down to a 24" model. This video has certainly given me much food for thought. Thank you

Alan

1 year ago

This was a terrific video and told me everything I wanted to know. i was particularly interested in your take on laptops because although I have a iMac I wanted to laptop to take on holidays

Sharon Nale

1 year ago

I am 80, and my husband always did the buying, but he is gone now. I need a new computer, and wonder if I will be able to transfer the data from my old laptop onto my new computer just by plugging in a cord from one to the other? I saw you do this on a different video. I mean, I am not so educated on computers. It sounds so simple. Will it be? Or should I hire a professional to do this for me? Thank you. I want to do it myself because it would help me believe in myself again!

Gary Rosenzweig

1 year ago

Sharon: Yes, you can use Migration Assistant. Hard for me to guess if this will be easy or hard for you, but that's how it is normally done. See https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204350

Thomas

1 year ago

In June, 2023 I bought a Mac Studio M2 Max which i have paired to a Dell U3223QE monitor. This is a great combo. Lots of great features, fast and easy to use. I got tired waiting for apple to release an M3 iMac

Comments Closed.

The Practical Mac Buying Guide (November 2023)

Comments: 21 Responses to “The Practical Mac Buying Guide (November 2023)”

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